THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY ---------------	SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIET NAM Independence - Freedom – Happiness --------------
No. 24/2004/QH11	Hanoi, June 15, 2004

 

CODE CIVIL PROCEDURE

Pursuant to the 1992 Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, which was amended and supplemented under Resolution No. 51/2001/QH10 of December 25, 2001 of the X th National Assembly, the 10th session.

This Law provides for the order and procedures for settling civil cases and matters and enforcing civil judgments.

Part One

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Chapter 1

TASK AND EFFECT OF THE CIVIL PROCEDURE CODE

Article 1.- Regulation scope and task of the Civil Procedure Code

The Civil Procedure Code provides for the basic principles in civil proceedings; the order and procedures for initiating lawsuits at courts to settle cases of civil, marriage and family, business, trade and labor disputes (hereinafter referred collectively to as civil cases) and the order and procedures to request courts to settle matters regarding civil, marriage and family, business, trade or labor requirements (hereinafter referred collectively to as civil matters); the order and procedures for settlement of civil cases, civil matters (hereinafter referred collectively to as civil cases and matters) at courts; the civil judgment enforcement; the tasks, powers and responsibilities of the procedure-conducting agencies, the procedure-conducting persons; the rights and obligations of persons participating in civil proceedings and of relevant individuals, State agencies, people's armed force units, economic organizations, political organizations, socio-political organizations, professional-socio-political organizations, social organizations, socio-professional organizations (hereinafter referred collectively to as agencies, organizations) in order to ensure the speedy, accurate, judicious and lawful settlement of civil cases and matters.

The Civil Procedure Code contributes to the protection of the socialist regime, enhances the socialist legislation, protects the interests of the State, and legitimate rights and interests of individuals, agencies and/or organizations; educates people to seriously abide by law.

Article 2.- Effect of the Civil Procedure Code

1. The Civil Procedure Code shall apply to all civil proceedings throughout the territory of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

2. The Civil Procedure Code shall apply to all civil proceedings conducted by consular offices of Vietnam in foreign countries.

3. The Civil Procedure Code shall apply to the settlement of civil cases and matters involving foreign element(s); where international treaties which Vietnam has signed or acceded to provide otherwise, the provisions of such international treaties shall apply.

4. For foreign individuals, agencies and organizations that enjoy diplomatic privileges and immunities or consular privileges and immunities under Vietnamese laws, international treaties which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam has signed or acceded to, the civil cases or matters related to such individuals, agencies and/or organizations shall be settled through the diplomatic channel.

Chapter II

BASIC PRINCIPLES

Article 3.- Assurance of the socialist legislation in civil procedures

All civil procedural activities of procedure-conducting persons, civil procedure-participants, of relevant individuals, agencies and organizations must comply with the provisions of this Code.

Article 4.- Right to request courts to protect legitimate rights and interests

Individuals, agencies and organizations defined by this Code shall have the right to institute civil cases, request the resolution of civil matters at competent courts in order to protect the legitimate rights and interests of their own or of others.

Article 5.- Involved parties' right to decision-making and self-determination

1. The involved parties shall have the right to decide whether to initiate civil lawsuits, request competent courts to settle civil cases or matters. The courts shall only accept for settlement civil cases and/or matters when they receive lawsuit petitions and/or written requests from the involved parties and shall settle the cases and/or matters only within the scope of such lawsuit petitions or written requests.

2. In the course of settling civil cases and/or matters, the involved parties shall have the right to terminate or change their requests or voluntarily reach agreement with one another, which is not contrary to law and social ethics.

Article 6.- Supply of evidences and proofs in civil procedures

1. The involved parties shall have the right and obligation to supply evidences to courts and prove that their requests are well grounded and lawful.

Individuals, agencies or organizations that initiate lawsuits or file their requests to protect the legitimate rights and interests of other persons shall have the right and obligation to supply evidences and to prove like the involved parties.

2. The courts shall only verify or gather evidences in the cases prescribed by this Code.

Article 7.- Responsibility of competent individuals, agencies and organizations to supply evidences

Individuals, agencies and organizations shall, within the scope of their tasks and powers, be obliged to provide the involved parties and courts with case evidences currently being under their possession or management at the requests of the involved parties and/or courts; in cases where they cannot do so, they must notify such to the involved parties and/or courts in writing and clearly state the reasons therefore.

Article 8.- Equality in rights and obligations in civil procedures

All citizens are equal before law and courts regardless of their nationalities, sexes, social status, beliefs, religions, educational levels and occupations. All agencies and organizations are equal regardless of their forms of organization, ownership and other matters.

The involved parties are equal in rights and obligations in civil procedures; the courts have the responsibility to create conditions for them to exercise their rights and perform their obligations.

Article 9.- Ensuring the involved parties' right to defense

The involved parties shall have the right to defend by themselves or ask lawyers or other persons who satisfy the conditions prescribed by this Code to defend their legitimate rights and interests.

The courts have the responsibility to provide assurance for the involved parties to exercise their right to defense.

Article 10.- Conciliation in civil procedures

The courts have the responsibility to conduct conciliation and create favorable conditions for the involved parties to reach agreement with one another on the resolution of civil cases or matters under the provisions of this Code.

Article 11.- Participation of people's jurors in adjudication of civil cases

The adjudication of civil cases shall be participated by people's jurors as provided for by this Code. Upon trials people's jurors are equal in powers to judges.

Article 12.- Judges and people's jurors are independent in trial and only comply with law

Upon trial of civil cases, judges and people's jurors shall be independent and only comply with law.

All acts of hindering judges and people's jurors from performing their tasks are strictly prohibited.

Article 13.- Responsibilities of civil procedure-conducting agencies, and persons

1. Civil procedure-conducting agencies and persons must respect the people and submit to the people's supervision.

2. Civil procedure-conducting agencies and persons shall be held responsible before law for the performance of their tasks and powers. Where the civil procedure-conducting persons commit law violation acts, they shall, depending on the nature and seriousness of their violations, be disciplined or examined for penal liability according to law provisions.

3. Civil procedure-conducting agencies and persons must keep State secrets, work secrets as prescribed by law; preserve the nation's fine customs and practices, keep professional secrets, business secrets, personal secrets of the involved parties at their legitimate requests.

4. If civil procedure-conducting persons commit illegal acts, causing damage to individuals, agencies and/or organizations, the courts must pay damages to the victims and the civil procedure-conducting persons shall have to reimburse the courts according to law provisions.

Article 14.- Collective trial by courts

A court shall conduct the collective trial of civil cases and make decisions by majority.

Article 15.- Public trials

1. The court trial of civil cases shall be carried out publicly, anyone can attend the trials, except for cases prescribed by this Code.

2. In special cases where it is necessary to keep the State secrets or preserve the nation's fine customs and practices, keep the professional secrets, business secrets or personal secrets of individuals at legitimate requests of the involved parties, the courts shall conduct trials behind closed doors but must publicly pronounce the judgments.

Article 16.- Ensuring impartiality of persons that conduct or participate in civil procedures

Chief judges, judges, people's jurors, court clerks, procuracy chairmen, prosecutors, interpreters and/or expert-witnesses must not conduct or participate in civil procedures if there are good reasons to believe that they may not be impartial in performing their tasks and exercising their powers.

Article 17.- Following the two-level adjudication regime

1. The courts shall follow the regime of two-level adjudication

The courts' first-instance judgments or decisions can be appealed or protested against under the provisions of this Code.

First-instance judgments or decisions which are not appealed or protested against according to appellate procedures within the time limit provided for by this Code shall become legally effective. Where first-instance judgments or decisions are appealed or protested against, the cases must undergo appellate trials. The appellate judgments or decisions shall be legally effective.

2. The courts' first-instance judgments or decisions which have already taken legal effect but have been detected with law violations or new details shall be reviewed according to the cassation or reopening procedures under the provisions of this Code.

Article 18.- Supervision of trials

Superior courts supervise the adjudication by subordinate courts, the Supreme People's Court supervises the adjudication by courts of all levels in order to ensure a strict and uniform application of law.

Article 19.- Assurance of the effect of courts' judgments, decisions

Legally effective judgments, decisions of courts must be enforced and observed by all citizens, agencies and organizations. Individuals, agencies and organizations that have the obligation to execute the courts' judgments, decisions must strictly execute them.

Within the scope of their respective tasks and powers, the People's Courts and agencies or organizations, which are assigned the tasks to enforce courts' judgments or decisions must strictly enforce them and bear responsibility before law for the performance of such tasks.

Article 20.- Spoken and written language used in civil procedures

Spoken and written language to be used in civil procedures is the Vietnamese.

Participants in civil procedures may use the voices and scripts of their ethnic groups and in this case interpreters are required.

Article 21.- Supervising the law observance in civil procedures

1. The People's Procuracies shall supervise the law observance in civil procedures and exercise the rights to request, petition or protest according to law provisions in order to ensure lawful and timely resolution of civil cases and matters.

2. The People's Procuracies shall participate in court sessions for cases with evidences collected by courts but complained about by the involved parties, for civil matters falling under the courts' jurisdiction and for civil cases and matters with courts' judgments or decisions protested against by the People's Procuracies.

Article 22.- Courts' responsibility to transfer documents and papers

1. The courts shall have the responsibility to transfer directly or via postal service their judgments, decisions, summons, invitations and other relevant documents to the participants in the civil procedures according to the provisions of this Code.

2. Where the courts cannot do so, the People's Committees of communes, wards or district townships (hereinafter called collectively commune-level People's Committees) where such persons reside or the agencies or organizations where they work shall have the responsibility to transfer the judgments, decisions, summons, invitations and other relevant papers of courts to such persons when so requested by courts and must notify the courts of the results thereof.

Article 23.- Participation of individuals, agencies, organizations in civil procedures

Individuals, agencies and organizations shall have the right and obligation to participate in civil procedures according to the provisions of this Code, and contribute to the lawful and timely resolution of the civil cases and matters at courts.

Article 24.- Assurance of the right to complaints and denunciations in civil procedures

Individuals, agencies and organizations shall have the right to complain about, individuals shall have the right to denounce, illegal acts of persons conducting the civil procedures or of any individuals, agencies or organizations in civil proceedings.

Competent agencies, organizations or individuals must accept, consider and settle promptly and lawfully complaints and denunciations; notify in writing the settlement results to the complainants and denouncers.

Chapter III

COURT'S JURISDICTION

Section 1. CIVIL CASES AND MATTERS FALLING UNDER THE COURTS' JURISDICTION

Article 25.- Civil disputes falling under the courts' jurisdiction

1. Disputes over the Vietnamese nationality among individuals;

2. Disputes over property ownership;

3. Disputes over civil contracts;

4. Disputes over intellectual property rights, technology transfers, except for the cases prescribed in Clause 2, Article 29 of this Code;

5. Disputes over property inheritance;

6. Disputes over compensation for non-contractual damage;

7. Disputes over the land use right and properties affixed to land under the land legislation;

8. Disputes relating to the professional press operation under law provisions;

9. Other civil disputes as stipulated by law.

Article 26.- Civil requests falling under the courts' jurisdiction

1. The request to declare a person losing his/her civil act capacity or having his/her civil act capacity restricted; or to revoke a decision declaring a person losing his/her civil act capacity or having restricted civil act capacity;

2. The request to announce the search of persons who are absent from their residential places and the management of their properties;

3. The request to declare a person missing; or to revoke a decision to declare a person missing;

4. The request to declare a person deceased; or to revoke a decision to declare a person deceased;

5. The request to recognize and enforce in Vietnam civil judgments or decisions or decisions on properties in criminal or administrative judgments or decisions of foreign courts or not to recognize civil judgments or decisions or decisions on properties in criminal or administrative judgments or decisions of foreign courts, which are not required to be enforced in Vietnam;

6. Other civil requests as stipulated by law.

Article 27.- Marriage and family-related disputes falling under the courts' jurisdiction

1. Divorces, disputes over child rearing or property division upon divorces.

2. Disputes over division of spousal common property during their marriage.

3. Disputes over change of post-divorce child custodian.

4. Disputes over determination of fathers or mothers for children; or determination of children for fathers or mothers.

5. Disputes over alimonies.

6. Other marriage-and family-related disputes stipulated by law.

Article 28.- Marriage-and family-related requests falling under the courts' jurisdiction

1. The requests to revoke illegal marriages;

2. The requests to recognize voluntary divorces, child custody or property division upon divorces;

3. The request to recognize an agreement on change of post-divorce child custodian;

4. The request to restrict rights of a father or mother towards a minor child or his/her right to see the child after divorce;

5. The request to terminate the adoption of children;

6. The request to recognize and enforce in Vietnam foreign courts' judgments or decisions on marriage and family; or not to recognize foreign courts' judgments or decisions on marriage and family which are not required to be enforced in Vietnam;

7. Other marriage-and family-related requests stipulated by law.

Article 29.- Business, trade disputes falling under the courts' jurisdiction

1. Disputes arising from business or trade activities among individuals and/or organizations with business registration, which are all for the purpose of profits, including:

a) Purchase and sale of goods;

b) Provision of services;

c) Distribution;

d) Commercial representation and/or agency;

e) Consignment;

f) Renting, leasing, hire-purchase;

g) Construction;

h) Consulting, engineering;

i) Cargo or passenger transportation by rail, road, or inland waterway;

j) Cargo or passenger transportation by air or sea;

k) Purchase and sale of shares, bonds and other valuable papers;

l) Investment, financing, banking;

m) Insurance;

n) Exploration and exploitation.

2. Disputes over intellectual property rights or technology transfers among individuals or organizations, which are all for the purposes of profits.

3. Disputes between a company and its members or among members of a company regarding the establishment, operation, dissolution, merger, consolidation, division, separation, organizational transformation of the company.

4. Other business, trade disputes prescribed by law.

Article 30.- Business or trade requests falling under the courts' jurisdiction

1. The requests related to the resolution of disputes by Vietnamese commercial arbitrators under law provisions on commercial arbitration;

2. The requests to recognize and enforce in Vietnam foreign courts' judgments or decisions on business or commercial matters, or not to recognize foreign courts' judgments or decisions on business or commercial matters, which are not required to be enforced in Vietnam;

3. The requests to recognize and enforce in Vietnam foreign arbitrators' awards on business or commercial matters;

4. Other business or commercial requests prescribed by law.

Article 31.- Labor disputes falling under the courts' jurisdiction

1. Individual labor disputes between employees and employers, which cannot be conciliated by grassroots labor conciliation boards or labor conciliators of labor State management agencies of urban districts, rural districts, provincial capitals, provincial towns or which have not been settled within the time limit prescribed by law, except for the following disputes which must not necessarily be conciliated at the grassroots level:

a) Disputes over labor discipline in the form of dismissal or over cases of unilateral termination of labor contracts;

b) Disputes over damage compensation between employees and employers; over financial support upon termination of labor contracts;

c) Disputes between household servants and their employers;

d) Disputes over social insurance under the provisions of labor legislation;

e) Disputes over damage compensation between laborers and labor exporters.

2. The collective labor disputes between labor collectives and employers, which have been resolved by labor arbitration boards of provinces or centrally-run cities but the labor collectives or employers disagree with the decisions of the labor arbitration boards, including:

a) Disputes over rights and/or interests related to job, wages, income and other working conditions;

b) Disputes over the performance of collective labor accords;

c) Disputes over the rights to set up, join, or operation of, trade union.

3. Other labor disputes prescribed by law.

Article 32.- Labor requests falling under the courts' jurisdiction

1. The request to recognize and enforce in Vietnam foreign courts' labor judgments or decisions, or not to recognize foreign courts' labor judgments or decisions which are not required to be enforced in Vietnam;

2. The request to recognize and enforce in Vietnam labor awards of foreign arbitrators;

3. Other labor requests prescribed by law.

Section 2. JURISDICTION OF COURTS OF DIFFERENT LEVELS

Article 33.- Jurisdiction of the people's courts of rural districts, urban districts, provincial capitals, provincial towns

1. The people's courts of rural districts, urban districts, provincial capitals, provincial towns (hereinafter referred collectively to as district-level people's courts) shall have the jurisdiction to settle according to first-instance procedures the following disputes:

a) Civil disputes over marriage and family, prescribed in Articles 25 and 27 of this Code;

b) Business, trade disputes prescribed at Points a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h and i of Clause 1, Article 29 of this Code;

c) Labor disputes prescribed in Clause 1, Article 31 of this Code.

2. The district-level people's courts shall have the jurisdiction to resolve the following requests:

a) Civil requests prescribed in Clauses 1, 2, 3 and 4 of Article 26 of this Code;

b) Marriage and family-related requests prescribed in Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 of Article 28 of this Code.

3. Disputes and requests prescribed in Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article, which involve parties or properties in foreign countries or which must be judicially entrusted to Vietnamese consulates overseas or to foreign courts, shall not fall under the jurisdiction of the district level people's courts.

Article 34.- Jurisdiction of the people's courts of provinces or centrally-run cities

1. The people's courts of provinces or centrally-run cities (hereinafter referred collectively to as the provincial-level people's courts) shall have the jurisdiction to settle according to first-instance procedures the following cases and matters:

a) Civil, marriage- and family-related, business, trade or labor disputes prescribed in Articles 25, 27, 29 and 31 of this Code, except for disputes falling under the jurisdiction of the district-level people's courts as provided for in Clause 1, Article 33 of this Code;

b) Civil, marriage-and family-related, business, trade or labor requests prescribed in Articles 26, 28, 30 and 32 of this Code, except for requests falling under the jurisdiction of the district-level people's courts as prescribed in Clause 2, Article 33 of this Code;

c) Disputes and requests prescribed in Clause 3, Article 33 of this Code.

2. The provincial-level people's courts shall have the jurisdiction to resolve according to first-instance procedures civil cases and matters falling under the jurisdiction of the district-level people's courts as provided for in Article 33 of this Code, which are taken up by provincial-level people's courts for settlement.

Article 35.- Territorial jurisdiction of courts

1. Territorial jurisdiction of courts to settle civil cases shall be determined as follows:

a) The courts of the localities where the defendants reside or work, if the defendants are individuals, or where the defendants are headquartered, if the defendants are agencies or organizations, shall have the jurisdiction to settle according to first-instance procedures civil, marriage- and family-related, business, trade or labor disputes prescribed in Articles 25, 27, 29 and 31 of this Code;

b) The involved parties shall have the right to agree with each other in writing to request the courts of the localities where the plaintiffs reside or work, if the plaintiffs are individuals, or where the plaintiffs are headquartered, if they are agencies or organizations, to settle civil, marriage and family-related, business, trade or labor disputes prescribed in Articles 25, 27, 29 and 31 of this Code;

c) The courts of the areas where exists immoveables shall have the jurisdiction to settle disputes over such immoveables.

2. Territorial jurisdiction of courts to settle civil matters shall be determined as follows:

a) The requested courts of the areas where persons are to be declared losing their civil act capacity or having restricted civil act capacity reside or work shall have the jurisdiction to resolve such requests;

b) The requested courts of the areas where persons absent from their residential place are to be announced for search or to be declared missing or dead reside for the last time, shall have the jurisdiction to settle requests for announcement of the search for persons absent from their residential places and management of such persons' properties or requests for declaring a person missing or dead;

c) The courts which have issued decisions to declare persons missing or dead shall have the jurisdiction to resolve requests to revoke their decisions;

d) The courts of the areas where the persons who are obliged to execute foreign courts civil, marriage and family, business, trade, or labor judgments or decisions reside or work, if judgment debtors are individuals or where the judgment debtors are headquartered, if they are agencies or organizations, or where exists the property relating to the enforcement of such judgments or decisions of foreign courts, shall have the jurisdiction to resolve requests to recognize and enforce foreign courts' civil, marriage and family, business, trade or labor judgments or decisions in Vietnam;

e) The courts of the areas where the request senders reside or work, if they are individuals, or where the request senders are headquartered, if they are agencies or organizations, shall have the jurisdiction to settle requests not to recognize foreign courts' civil, marriage and family, business, trade or labor judgments or decisions, which are not required to be enforced in Vietnam;

f) The courts of the areas where the persons who are obliged to execute awards of foreign arbitrators reside or work, if the judgment debtors are individuals or where the judgment debtors are headquartered, if they are agencies or organizations or where exists the property relating to the enforcement of foreign arbitrators' awards, shall have the jurisdiction to resolve requests to recognize and enforce in Vietnam awards of foreign arbitrators;

g) The courts of the areas where illegal marriages are registered shall have the jurisdiction to resolve requests to revoke such illegal marriages;

h) The court of the area where one of the parties to a voluntary divorce, child custody or property division resides or works shall have the jurisdiction to resolve the request to recognize the voluntary divorce, child custody, property division upon divorce;

i) The court of the area where one of the parties that requests the court to recognize their agreement on change of post-divorce child custodian resides or works shall have the jurisdiction to resolve that request;

j) The court of the area where one parent of a minor child resides or works shall have the jurisdiction to resolve a request to restrict rights of the father or mother towards the minor child or his/her right to see the child after the divorce;

k) The court of the area where an adoptive parent or adopted child resides or works shall have the jurisdiction to resolve a request to terminate the child adoption;

l) The courts' territorial jurisdiction to resolve requests relating to the settlement of disputes by the Vietnamese commercial arbitrators shall comply with law provisions on commercial arbitration.

Article 36.- Jurisdiction of courts selected by plaintiffs or requesters

1. The plaintiffs shall have the right to select courts for resolution of civil, marriage and family-related, business, trade or labor disputes in the following cases:

a) If the plaintiffs do not know where the defendants reside or work or where their head-offices are located, they may ask the courts of the areas where the defendants last reside or work or where the head-offices of the defendants are last located or where the defendants' properties are located to settle cases;

b) If disputes arise from the operations of a branch of an organization, the plaintiff may ask the court of the area where the organization's head-office is located or where its branch is located to settle them;

c) If defendants do not have residence places, work places or head-offices in Vietnam or